


What More Can I Do? I Am Still Painting Flowers For You

by cashtonflowers



Category: 5 Seconds of Summer (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Neighbors, Boys In Love, Cashton, Drinking, Fluff, Gentleman Ashton, Grocery Shopping, Kinda mentioned, Kissing, M/M, Muke - Freeform, Original Character(s), Oxford, REALLY WHIPPED, Sassy Calum, Stargazing, THIS IS 8K, Tent Fun :), Texting, Whipped Calum, again no SMUT, dick talk, no smut tho, smart boys, title from Painting Flowers by All Time Low
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-27
Updated: 2017-02-27
Packaged: 2018-09-27 08:05:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,889
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9984389
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cashtonflowers/pseuds/cashtonflowers
Summary: Ashton, Michael's roommate, moves into Calum's town and Calum just might be falling for him. So hard that he needs to keep track of how much he actually is and Michael just seems to be a little too smitten over Luke Hemmings, Ashton's housemate.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Um so I have a book on Wattpad and I turned it into a one-shot so this is long af but I swear it's worth it.

The loud chirps of the birds outside were softly echoing in Calum's ear, his blurred vision when he first woke up was slowly disappearing as he blinked owlishly. It was like any other morning where he would wake up to his shirtless self, get dressed, have a quick breakfast and go out to take a look at his garden that was under a thin layer of glass because of the weather. 

He stood up slowly, wobbling around as he stumbled into the kitchen to slowly breathe in the exquisite smell of it. The Maori has always been a man of beautiful things, roses and the smell of them were his weakness. He also loved other flowers but roses were special to him in some way. 

They were everywhere in his house, flowers. Some hung up in the wall of his kitchen and some in vases. He also had some plants in his room, even though he was told that it was unhealthy he simply didn't care. When his beat friend visited him, that's all he kept rambling about. 

< "They keep in and breathe ou-"

"Flowers breathe?"

"God damn it Calum!" >

It happened regularly, it always did but he wouldn't change it in a million years. The arguments he had with Michael were special to him, how he would make sarcastic remarks as the green eyed boy spoke as his knowledged self. Calum really shouldn't have let him go to Oxford, he really shouldn't have let the boy share facts about literature whenever he got the chance. 

But he did and only a little, a very little part of him regretted it. 

His forehead puckered as he opened his silver colored fridge, only to be met with cucumber and carrots. He loved both of them but this meant that he had to go to supermarket down the street to shop for milk and coffee beans. Calum needed coffee. 

He climbed up the stairs to reach his room once more, throwing out his wrinkly white shirt and replacing it with a olive green one instead along with black ripped jeans. He had made his own perfume with a little help from the lady down the street by letting him watch how she made her soap and offer to help him with that and other stuff. 

Diana was a sweet lady, always having a small smile on her slightly wrinkled face that she managed to cover with a little help from foundation. She was in her 40s but she looked a little bit closer to 50, still proving that she really was a heartbreaker when she was young with her beautiful light blue eyes. 

Calum loved the woman to pieces and took her as a parent figure in his life, he made a note to himself to drop by and give her a bouquet of daisies. 

The brown eyed boy walked down once more after spraying the perfume made out of roses on himself and taking one last look at the mirror, making sure that he looked decent. 

He made sure to grab his phone to check out his texts, seeing that he had received one from Michael when he was sleeping ;

Mike<3 : 

wanna go out tomorrow to get some coffee? 

/ 4:56 / 

 

Calum :

why did you text me so late? is everything fine mikey?

/ 11:34 / 

Mike<3 : 

yes calum, im fine. just wanna see ya. you available?

Calum:

yea m8, i need to shop tho

Michael<3 :

Mind me joining?

Calum:

of course not

Michael<3 : 

are u home

Calum: 

no I'm Calum

Michael<3 : 

im coming you cheeky ass

Calum smiled softly, placing the device on his white dining table and walking over to the fridge to get some water, the only thing left except carrots and cucumbers. He guessed that his blue haired friend would be over in at least five minutes, a perk of them living in the same street but he definitely didn't expect to hear a loud knock on his kitchen door right there. 

The boy was standing there with a grey beanie, a coat matching the color and a white shirt. He also had a lackluster smile on his face, his pale face looking like porcelain as always. His best friend rushed towards the door, twisting the circular shaped opening in a fast manner and pulling it open. 

Michael walked in slowly, offering the boy in the a warm hug, tighter than Calum had imagined. They hadn't seen each other for almost a week, always depending their communication on texting for unknown reasons, so the embrace was something the Maori really appreciated.

"Where were you?"

Was the first question that the brown eyed one asked, his head still in the crook of Michael's neck.

"I'm about to tell you if you follow me like the patient person you are."

The irony in his sentence was that Calum was the probably the most impatient person ever. He would freak out if Michael was like five minutes late to their meating, he would freak out if the boy avoided a subject and didn't tell him things. Which he was doing now.

As they got out, Calum locked the door behind them, the cool weather hitting them both on the face along with the scent of the Kiwi's roses. The raven haired boy had an old piano in his garden that didn't work, it had flowers growing all over it and he was keeping it because it reminded him of Corpse Bride, his favorite movie ever. 

The piano was beautiful to him, the dirt on it gave him an old vibe that he seemed to adore. He took pictures of it, sometimes sat down to press his fingers on it and try to play it even if he didn't know how to, he just liked the faint sound it created. And the piano was placed right in front of Calum's kitchen door, grass leading people to his house.

The path was wet as they walked out, dirt covering the sides of their black boots. They got out of the garden covered in flowers and plants, heading down the street to the market.

"So," Calum said, making the other one's brows knit in a frown.

"So, what?"

Michael was doing the thing Calum hated, he was avoiding the subject.

The brown eyed boy sighed, "We're gonna do this sooner or later Mikey and you know it damn well."

"I'm sorry Cal, you know I am."

"I know Michael, just please explain so I can understand."

They were still walking down, people passing next to them as the emerald eyed boy nodded, "I didn't avoid talking to you on purpose, I simply had to."

Calum just nodded, staring at him with cow eyes. 

"My mother called me this Monday and she told me that grandma passed away."

"Shit Michael, I'm sorry."

"It's fine, but the thing that actually bothered me is that mom is trying to move out from her place because she can't handle the "presence of my grandmother" or whatever. She got all crazy with this weird spirit stuff and I caught her with one of those weird ass board things."

The raven haired boy couldn't help but smile at the boy's words, "Ouija?"

"Oh my god, I hate it when you are the one correcting me."

They both giggled at that, Calum looking up to meet his best friend's shining eyes, "Where is your mom gonna move into, Oxford boy?"

"She doesn't want to move in with me, even though I've offered."

The Kiwi's forehead puckered, "Why?"

"Because she still couldn't face the fact that I'm gay and my grandmother was strongly against queer shit so she doesn't want to be cursed and stuff," the pale boy said, rolling his eyes skyward. 

Calum snorted, "She thinks she'll be cursed if she moves in with her gay son?"

"Yes Hood, yes she fucking does."

"I mean, she would be cursed but not because you're gay."

That sentence earned Calum a punch on his left arm.

"Whatever assface, that's why I couldn't see your annoying self the whole week. Because my mom went nuts and another weird person from my family passed away."

Calum smiled at his best friend as they walked in from an automatic door, entering the supermarket that was strangely cold. The huge room was filled with people whp they knew, the lady from the flower shop, Diana and her friends, Mr. Davis with his wife and Anne with her younger brother. 

"So Petunia, what do we need?"

Calum rolled his brown irises but still managed to tell the boy, "Basically everything."

The slightly older one of the two nodded, dawdling along side the shop. They walked over to the dairy section together, Calum grabbing a metal cart on the way there and Michael starting to place milk in it. 

He knew his best friend was a sucker for coffee, the Kiwi couldn't wake up properly if he didn't have the brown liquid with him and Michael could tell that either coffee or milk was the most most important things Calum ran out from. 

"I'm sure you need some asparagus as well so we should probably head to the vegetable section," the green eyed boy said, making Calum's lips purse like he'd been chewing on a lemon rind.

Calum hated asparagus. 

"I still hate the fact that the farmer's market is like a kilometer away and we need to buy vegetables here and you offering me to buy asparagus really makes me wanna puke right here."

Michael shot his tongue out before patting his friend on the back, "Alright organic boy, lead us to the next stop so we can get some good ass coffee." 

"Right," said Calum after vigorously nodding, pushing the cart over to the cereal section and turning back to Michael, "You're on a mission bitch, buy me cereal and other stuff I like on breakfast so I can move faster and choose bread."

And surprisingly, Michael just smiled, "You got it, bitch."

The Kiwi took long-legged strides to his way over the little bakery section, seeing that there was only one person in the queue.

And when that person turned around, Calum was done. 

The boy had hazel eyes, a sharp jawline and short light brown hair. He was very attractive, his frame not being small at all and his eyes digging holes on Calum's body without noticing, leaving the Kiwi vulnerable in front of a Greek god.

"Hello, I'm Ashton and I'm new here."

His voice tone was full with happiness, his dimples visible as he talked.

"Hi, I'm Calum and it's very nice to meet you Ashton. Did you move in today?"

The brown eyed boy was trying to start a conversation, he wanted to know more and he wanted to understand how he could live without seeing such a calming presence in front of him. 

"You could say that," he said, chuckling, "Me and my friend moved in at midnight because the trucks were late and all so it's technically today. You have a beautiful town, Calum."

Calum's pupils were delating as the other one talked but he still had the guts to respond with a shaky voice tone, "W-where did you move into?"

"It's like the sixth house on the way up there, it has a view that I actually was enticed by. My neighbor across the street seems like they're really into gardening since there garden is like full of them."

Calum had bug-eyes at this point as he realized that this very attractive boy had moved into his street, he had moved in to the house that has been empty for years and was now talking about the Maori's house, "Did it have a piano in it?"

"Yes it did oh my god! I held myself back so hard to not go and try to play it."

Calum smiled at him, "You are always welcome to come and play with my piano, neighbor."

And he waved at the boy, leaving the bakery section without getting anything and getting showered by questions from Michael while he left a dimpled boy behind. 

: 

 

As they walked out of the store with plastic bags in their shaking hands, no words were said. It was just Michael taking small glances at his best friend with questioning eyes and the other one knowing exactly what he was doing. 

"What the hell do you want Michael?"

It was more of a question than an angry remark, it was visible from the soft tone of his voice that was mixed with slight annoyance. 

The blue haired boy sighed, crossing his arms and turning so he could face the other boy, "I want you to explain."

"What?"

"Don't play my own game with me Calum Hood."

"What if I fucking do Michael Clifford."

"Just fucking tell me asswipe."

The brown eyed boy sighed, pulling his friend towards the cafe, "So I met this boy in the line which was only two of us."

The sentence got the other one smiling, "So you've got a new thing?"

"Stop interrupting me dammit! What the fuck ever, so we started talking and you know, The Other Calum came in and he looked like a fucking twink in front of that smiley hot piece of shit," Calum groaned while Michael let out a giggle.

They both walked into the beige place, Michael pushing the glass door that had a dark brown frame over it open, "I suggest you don't act like The Other Calum when you see him the next time because if you want to get this guy, you gotta be yourself."

"No one likes The Normal Calum other than Oxford Boy."

"Whatever this guy's name is," Michael stopped in the middle of his sentence, raising a single finger up in the air and sucking in his bottom lip, "What was his name again?"

"Ashton, even his name is fucking cute and I want to dive into his dimples and I do not know who he even is entire-"

The boy beside him was in shock, his pupils seemed expand while he just stared at his best friend that was staring back at him with confusion, "As-Ashton?"

"Yes mate, Ashton. Is he your grandma or something what the fuck?"

Michael was not in the mood to laugh.

"C-can you describe him to me?"

The brown eyed boy was still confused but he managed to pull Michael to their favorite booth, "He like had these hazel eyes, his dimples were deep as hell and his hair was like a golden color."

"Did he have an Australian accent?"

The other one nodded, "A very thick one actually."

"Well Calum, you said that Oxford Boy was the only that liked you right?" 

Calum nodded.

"You might have another one of those since that sound very Ash to me, you just described my roommate in your favorite school, Oxford."

"Oh my god I fucking hate you smart people pulling me into liking you."

The boy with the green orbs rolled them once more while still having his arm raised up so the waiter could come and get their usual order. It was a stupid action since the young girl there, Frida, knew what they were going to order but it was their tradition in some sort. 

"I haven't contacted that dude for two years," Michael suddenly spoke, "He is a really cool person."

"Why didn't you keep in touch than?"

"It was so fucking stupid man, my phone got refreshed and I had to change my number, didn't talk that much anyway. He likes romance, wrote about Titanic a lot and did a research on how Jack and Rose were made up names for that one other couple which I don't remember the names of," he took a death breath in before continuing his sentence, "He's great."

"Did you ever-you know?"

"Did we ever what, Calum?"

"You know, fuck?"

"Oh my god hell no what the fuck?"

The brown eyed boy shrugged, acting like he didn't care all that much anyway. The way Michael described him made him seem like one of those dreamy Disney Prince's and he liked that, he liked romantic stuff a lot. 

"You said he likes Romance right?"

The boy beside him nodded, smiling up at the girl that was about to take their order and mumbling out a small, "The usual." before turning his attention back to Calum, "He's a Romance junkie. We both had our little book sections and his was just full of John Green then more complex stuff."

"Like Romeo & Juliet?"

"Not really," he stopped mid sentence, "No."

"Why did you stop?"

"The person that I've just called a romance junkie has never contained the best Romance book ever in his library."

 

♡  ♡  ♡ 

 

Calum was lying down on his bed, a thin white layer of his bedsheets covering his feet and legs. The night was the perfect weather, not too cold or not too hot, making Calum relax into the soft material he was sitting in. He had his finger tips brushing over a book's old pages, his eyes going left to right on the black letters. 

He heard cheering from outside, something that suprised him. The town of Greenville was never the place to have one making an absurd voice. It of course drove him to two options, Ashton or Ashton's friend. He stood up to go check, leaving his book that was so old that it's pages were now a solid yellow other than white. He moved closer to the window, slowly brushing off his plain white curtain and revealing a sight that he had never imagined.

Michael, his best friend had his arms wrapped around Ashton. Both of them hugging each other tightly as a tall guy just stood next to them, a smile on his face and heart eyes. Calum thought that it wouldn't be a good idea for him to go out so other than that he walked down the stairs, pretending to go down to the kitchen and opening all of the light on purpose. 

He tiptoed towards his coffee machine and poured some of the dark brown beans in the red container. He then grabbed a circular mug that had an orange ceramic covering it's outsides while it's insides were a dirty white that he just seemed to adore. He put the mug down into the place that the coffee was supposed to go in and watched as it slowly streamed down. 

And that's when he heard a knock on his door, turning around slowly and facing the hazel eyed boy that was smiling deeply at him, a brown cup in his hands. Calum walked towards him, opening the door so he could come in. The boy was wearing a black t-shirt that showed off his frame perfectly and a pair of ripped jeans. He looked good, hot as hell to be exact. 

As he walked in, he breathed the air of the room's in, "It smells lovely in here."

The Maori smiled proudly, still having his mug in between his warm hands, "Roses."

"I love roses, they always look delectable."

The words Ashton chose were not things Calum would use in real life and that interested him. Michael, who apparently went to the same school as Ashton never used those kind of words. Maybe it was Ashton's stile of writing. Poetry perhaps.

"So do I, they are like," he looked around the room and smiled again, "Fucking awesome."

"You sound hot when you curse."

"You are going to hear me sound hot a lot."

Ashton smiled and handed him the brown cup, "My friend Luke made these, he's like really passionate about baking and he told me to deliver this to you. Also to Michael but I figured because you guys are best friends, at least that's what a certain person told me, you could deliver this to him as well."

"Oh yeah, well. Seems like he isn't going to get any," Calum's mouth watered when he saw the brownies, "Because I'm going to eat most of them."

Ashton chuckled.

Calum liked his chuckle.

Calum was whipped. 

: 

 

After Ashton gave him the brownies, Calum somehow gained the confidence to invite him in. It had just slipped out of his mouth and the boy had oddly accepted his offer. And now as they were sitting on Calum's couch, a white wine in the Maori's and a red one in Ashton's, all they could think about was the soft music playing in the background and their low voiced conversation.

Ashton was chewing the cheese that Calum had offered on a wooden board, grapes decorated next to them. What the hazel eyed boy learned about Calum so far was enough for him to have an infatuation towards him. He was a man of decoration, he liked roses and flowers a lot, he was openly gay and had a thing for mango. 

Now Ashton was a whole other story for Calum with his romance books, attractive looks, kind words and perfect nose. His favorite book ever written was Anna Karenina, you could tell it was from the way he introduced him to it, the way his eyes lit up when he came to the favorite part of the book. 

"You never mentioned Shakespeare? Do you like him?"

"Yeah I love Macbeth," said Ashton before taking a sip from the dark red liquid between his hands.

"Romeo and Juilet?" he asked, kind of like a question but not really.

Ashton chuckled, "I hate that plot."

The other boy was in complete shock, "Why?"

The hazel eyed one scooted over to the boy, throwing a chunk of cheese in his mouth, "Love at first sight Calum, it doesn't exist."

"Don't knock it 'till you try it man."

"Romeo and Juliet weren't in love, they were caught up in the idea of it. You need to get to know a person before you love them, a sentence, an interest, a single word maybe. But when you see a person, you can't fall in love with them immediately. We call that a crush."

"How many times can you fall in love?"

Ashton stopped for a moment, ghosting his eyes on the boy's decorated apartment, the furnitures mostly made out of wood with roses everywhere. The question was a weird one, it was something that confused him. He wrote about love without even knowing what it actually felt like, and that confused him even more, "I don't know."

"I think people should do that you know, they should keep count of how many times they fall in love with a person."

"A single person?" Ashton rose and eyebrow.

"Do you believe in soulmates?"

"Yeah, yeah I do."

Calum smiled sheepishly, looking down at his hands with a small tint of blush in his cheeks, "I always thought that when you met your soulmate, you fell in love with them more and more everyday. I know that's weird, I always got told that it was we-"

"Your way of thinking Calum," the boy with the heavy accent said, smiling at the other one, "It fascinates me." 

Calum blushed, no one has ever complemented him on his mind. He hadn't went to an important university like his friend did, he wasn't good with Mathematics, he didn't know any Chemistry (simply because he didn't care). Ashton was making him feel special, he was taking his sassy being and showing him other personality traits.

"So music? What do you like?" 

Ashton smiled, "I love Blood On The Dance Floor."

"I will fucking murder you."

They both started laughing, Calum throwing his head back and Ashton leaning down. They weren't drunk, they couldn't have been from a single glass of wine, but they were overdosing on each other and loving it. 

"No actually though, Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Clu-"

"Stop making fun of this subject Ashton."

"I'm serious! It's an album name," said the boy, taking his phone out of his pocket and searching the name on google, "See? The Beatles." 

"Okay wow, I like Jazz and other smooth stuff. But I actually stumbled across Queen once and they're great."

"Isn't that like too rock for someone that likes Jazz?"

"I'm not gonna break if I hear loud shit Ashton."

The boy chuckled.

Calum loved his chuckle.

Calum was whipped.

"Yeah yeah, I know you won't. You seem unbreakable," his eyebrows were scrunched together in an eagle-like way and he was straight up staring at the boy beside him. 

Calum noticed the eyes on him, they made him look down shyly, only to have Ashton's single hand turn his head back to him, eyes looking deeply at each other, "I like to look at people's eyes when I tell them that they're beautiful."

"W-what?"

"You are beautiful Calum."

 

♥ ♡ ♥ 

 

Ashton went home that night after the talk, right after telling Calum that he was beautiful he stood up and took ahold of the boy's hand and kissed it. The house's owner waved him goodbye with a small smile and rosy cheeks. The other boy smiled back, breaking the dimple wall and letting the flood take over. 

Calum thought about him that night, head pressed against his warm pillow which he turned around so he could get a feel from the cold side. He thought about his strong words and how they affected him, he thought about how smart he was, how he didn't believe in certain things and how he kissed him. His lips, oh god his lips were like a touch of heaven on Calum's hand. He kept on rubbing the spot because it still felt like ants were walking all over it. 

The Maori had never felt this weak, this vulnerable in his entire life. He thought about their conversation, how Ashton complimented him on his way of thinking. He thought about the possibility of him being in love with Ashton but it didn't feel like that, it felt like he was falling in love. He wanted to keep count like he told Ashton he would. But was Ashton his soulmate?

He had to be. He had never met anyone that kind, someone that affected him as much the boy did. His life was complicated with his father stuff and his siblings but he had made it through, he had went to Oxford and had gotten a high degree on literature. Ashton had made it through. Maybe Calum didn't love him just yet, but he was going to in days. 

He wasn't going to be friend zoned, he knew that Ashton couldn't avoid his actions and he knew that he wouldn't want to. So that's how he stood up and blinked owlishly, grabbing a dead rose he had picked up from his garden that day and tearing a petal apart, placing into a circular shaped glass cup. He was going to keep count. He was going to keep count of how many times he fell in more and more in love with Ashton. 

He walked over to his window that had a perfect view of Ashton and his friend's house. The boy's window was open and he looking up at the sky, sitting at his desk with a pen in his hand. He looked up at the dark blue atmosphere that had white dots all over it and looked back down at the blank page in front of him, writing something that Calum couldn't (unfortunately) see down. And then it happened, he looked at Calum and smiled. 

Calum smiled back, waving at him. It was midnight and the moon was up, if someone took a photograph right there, right at that moment or painted it, it would be worth millions. It was something that looked like it was out of a movie scene, two people staring at each other in a very fond manner with soft smiles with a moon in between them. 

Maybe Ashton couldn't paint that, or take a photo of it. But he wrote it down. And what did Calum do? He tore another rose petal.

:

 

When he woke up, Calum was met with a small note attached to his kitchen window, a letter you could say. The packaging was a worn out yellow, a small flower design on it. It had Ashton's name written on it, his surname that was something Calum seemed to adore decorating the downside. 

From: Ashton Fletcher Irwin

To: Calum Thomas Hood

Dear Calum,

I really didn't want to be rude enough to knock on your door and wake you up in such an early hour of the day so I'm leaving this really quick note to invite you to the cafeteria I saw when I was moving in. Luke, my housemate seems to be out, probably with Michael so I really wanted to see you and your beautiful self again.

Lots Of Love,

Ashton

Ps: Sorry this was super 40s, didn't get your number so thought this was an alright way to catch your worthy attention, hope you go down to your kitchen sometime soon. 

And the rest of the page had drawings of flowers on it, which he was sure Ashton had drawn. They weren't messy, %100 the boy's own drawing since his hand writing was neat. Like, really neat. It was more of a circular shape, the letters not crossing one another. It kind of represented his personality.

He didn't drink coffee since he knew that they were going to a cafeteria and assumed it would be too much. So instead he plodded up the stairs, realizing that he could be keeping Ashton worried he rammed his bare foot into his jeans, putting on an olive green shirt on along with a black beanie. 

He then got out of his house, locking the front door even though he knows no one will enter his "humble abode" and throwing his keys in his jeans' pocket. He just crossed the street to knock on Ashton's door, fixing up his beanie a little so he made sure he looked decent. He was met with a huge smile of the boy when the door was opened, him wearing a plain white shirt with black colored jeans, his hair a little messy, making him look even more sexy than he already was. 

"Hey," the boy with the accent greeted him, waving his hand up like the kind person he is, still a small smile attached to his lips.

Calum smiled back at him, "Hello there, you citizen of the 40s let's say!"

They both chuckled, Ashton taking the lead to talk, "Well I was dumb enough not to get your number so I just made a bold move like that, hope that was a good way to catch an attractive person's interest back then since it seems to work nowadays."

The Maori blushed, dropping his head down to the floor as he just observes the tiles, "So, you were talking about that cafeteria right? I'm craving for some good ass coffee right now so I may lead you through this experience."

Ashton smiled, taking a step forward and locking the door as Calum backed up. They stopped for a moment, Ashton looking up to him for a second as he was being admired by Calum, both not realizing what they were doing. They seemed to zone out, not minding the tension as Calum took the lead to head out. 

He put his hand in his jeans, fingers crashing into his keys, feeling the cold metal. He thought about what they had just done, the obvious staring at each other and how the boy's eyes felt on him. How they were a mixture of green and faint brown, how enticed he was by them. 

"Is it always so cold here or do I just seem to cross it in an Inuit-like season?" the boy asked, catching up on Calum's side and starting to walk next to him. 

Calum frowned in questioning, "What is an Inuit?"

The other one smiled, "An Inuit is the same thing as an Eskimo. Yet the word Eskimo is kind of like an insult against the people of the cold. It means something like raw meat eater so I prefer to not call them that."

Calum nodded, feeling a little embarrassed on how uncultured he probably looked in the other boy's eyes, "I think I'll start doing that as well."

The hazel eyed boy smiled at him, going back to tracing his eyes over the town and admiring it. He stopped for a moment and glanced at Calum, "How long have you lived here?"

"I moved here when I was eighteen, which means it has been four years in this beautiful gutter," he smiled, ghosting his eyes on the buildings as well. 

Ashton nodded, not bothering to question or dig through the fact that he and Calum were the same age, "You like this place? I've grown to love it in two days. Such a lovely and natural environment."

The other boy nodded, "I love it. Always wished to move out of the crowded city and take my ass over to a happy and peaceful place. This is like heaven to me."

Ashton nodded in approval, continuing to walk by the boy's side and observe the town. It was like a painting, the pastel colors of the houses, the beautiful bright sky with those pale clouds that looked like they had been squirted in like a water color painting and the exquisite flowers of Calum's house. 

Every side of it was beautiful and having Calum in the middle of it was just a plus. The boy looked a structure himself, his fairly broad shoulders, brown eyes that looked like they were a shade of red, plump lips and the bulge of his rose gold biceps. Ashton just couldn't help but admire him. 

The things he had told him the night before were true, he truly was beautiful. His raven hair was dancing along in the wind, the beanie he was wearing keeping the upper part safe while the boy shrank his eyes down. His face structures were sharp, his cheekbones and jawline taking the spotlight along with his squishy nose.  

Ashton wished he was a painter, or a photographer perhaps so he could capture Calum's every action. He painted rarely, using the things he had learned from Luke but he wasn't nearly as good as him. He loved watching the boy paint, he loved everything about the art sessions they had but the dirty brushes the blue eyed boy left on their kitchen table. He hated those a lot.

"Michael and Luke seem to be getting along," said Calum, offering Ashton a small wink. 

The curly haired boy threw his head back with a chuckle, "I don't remember seeing Luke so infatuated with anyone or anything else before, it's kind of interesting."

Calum hadn't seen Mikey for two days so he didn't have the chance to catch up with him and his love life. It seemed like it was going well though, having a pretty attractive dude that has an interest in him would sure cheer the boy up. Oh wait, he did have one. 

They were close to their final destination while they passed by Diana's shop, Calum pointing at it with a smile on his face, "The lady that you can find here will be your life saver, she could help with anything."

Ashton smiled and after a few steps they entered the coffee shop, the Maori pushing the door open and Ashton following him in to a brown table that was decorated with bright blue tissues. They sat down, Aston joining his hands in a knot while Calum waited for the waitress. 

The boy beside him looked even better after the windy weather, his short hair a little messed up and looking sexy. He couldn't imagine having him as his although he wanted to. He just looked perfect, had a kind way of talking which he had to admit was really attractive. The way he used his words was different and unique. 

The waitress came though with a wooden board in her hand, paper attached to it. She smiled down at them, "What can I get you two?"

They ordered the drinks, soon enough Calum going back to observing Ashton, "So?"

The boy raised an eyebrow, "So?"

"I'd like, really like to get to know you and stuff, like more."

Ashton nodded, "Since we got over the stones of my life let me talk about the dirt. I wasn't raised in a fully healthy family."

Calum nodded, signaling him to go on with an unrelenting stare. 

"My mom was horribly abused by my father, as a child all I could do was listen and all mom could do was take the pain she was given. But then things happened, she divorced him, she was about to sue but he ran away."

The other boy didn't interrupt, listening carefully. 

"So she got married to Bruce and I was gracefully given one half-brother and one half-sister. Lauren and Harry were all I had, they fully supported the marriage and so did I. I treated them like my real family and I've known to grow to understand the fact that family does not consist of a blood relation."

Calum smiled at him, placing his hands on Ashton's that were on the table, "You are a brave person Ashton."

"Brave people don't wait for things."

The brown eyed boy sighed, shaking his head, "Bravery doesn't bring stupidity with it. Not always."

The hazel eyed boy looked up, their coffees arriving as soon as he did. The waitress placed them on the table, leaving just as soon. Ashton didn't even move his coffee, he took out a pen and offered Calum a tissue, the boy taking it with confusion. 

He then gave him the pen, "Will you give me the honor of having your number?"

 

:

Calum went home after their meeting in the cafe, the hour of the day being closer to noon where the sun was fully up yet the weather was quite cold. He took out his jeans and threw on baggy trousers instead so he could relax and possibly watch the television show episodes he had uploaded before. He first got himself s croissant though, taking out from the bread section of his kitchen and cutting it in two to eat the parts where the treat had chocolate in first. 

He then sat down on his couch with a plate in his hands, opening up the television and starting to watch a random episode of How To Get Away With Murder. He always seemed to be more interested in television shows that contained a gay couple but he didn't feel the need to question the reason. He already knew it in a way.

His hands found their way to his phone that he had left on the coffee table before going out. He  had a couple of texts, two from Michael and one from an unknown number which he was guessing was Ashton.

Mike<3 :

OH MY GOD OH MY GOD OH MY GOD. ASHTON'S HOUSEMATE IS THE MOST PERFECT PERSON I'VE EVER MET LIKE OH MY GOD.

Mike<3 :

CALUM WE LITERALLY WENT OUT TODAY FOR A waLK AND HE LIKE BLUSHED A LOT AND HE WAS CUTE AND I DONT KNOW WHAT TO DO IM AT HOME PLS COME I GTFG BC IM DYING I DONT KNOW WHAT TO DO I M GONNA CRYHSJZJjzjxnzjm.

Calum : 

michael you went 2 oxford for uni why are u still using grammar that is not correct?

Calum:

i'll be over in like ten, gimme a sec

He then went on to check what Ashton had texted him earlier.

 

Unknown:

Hello Calum! This is my phone number and I hope that you remember that I you gave me your own so I don't seem like a stalker. Hope you have a fantastic friday and I can see you again really soon! Today was fun, I love hearing what you have to say.

Lots Of Love,

Ash Xx

Calum smiled down at the text for a second before changing the boy's name into Ashton. Just a simple Ashton in case of being caught.

He did stand up after it, closing his television and letting the screen go fully black while he ran up the stairs to give his hair a final look, just to make sure it looked good. He then grabbed a random coat from his closet, making sure he brought his phone with him that time, putting it into his pocket and going out. 

He walked, his hands in his pockets because of the autumn coolness. His feet dragged him towards his best friend's house, looking down to the blanket that had Welcome written on it. An oddly sweaty Michael opened the door. The boy had an over exited smile on his face, his faint dimples clearly visible, "Fucking finally bro!" he shouted, pulling the boy in his house by his left wrist. 

Calum just followed his movements with his eyes, his eyebrows knitted in a frown of confusion. He had never seen Michael so.. different. He seemed excited but also scared, the reason that he had explained being Luke. 

"Michael, are you fucking okay?" 

He watched as his best friend shook his head eagerly. 

"I'm not fucking okay Calum. Do you think, do you fucking think that I would be behaving this way if I was okay? Do you really?"

Calum just sat down to his couch, shrugging, "I don't know Michael, you are weird. So, 'sup with blondie?"

"Blondie," said the one with the bleached hair, "Blondie is fucking beautiful and is making me feel things I don't wanna feel but I hate him for that. I hate him for making me fall in love with him and that's like really fucking weird you know? It's really weird that I hate him for something that he would probably hate me doing and like I had the guts to ask him out on a date and he said yes and fuck. Just fuck Calum!"

"Michael, I don't think that's appropriate. We're best friends and I don't like you that wa-"

Michael cut him in the middle of his sentence, "Just take me seriously this time Calum, I think this is like what those cringy-ass romance authors talk about because like damn."

"Do you love Luke?"

Michael looked up to the ceiling, "I do not not love him."

"You love him?"

His friend this time looked him in the eye, "I am starting to. I started today. It's so sudden, I hate it coming this soon."

Calum nodded and then looked down, "I'm falling for Ashton too."

"You're what?"

"I know right."

Michael chuckled, scooting over to wrap his arms around the boy, "My best friend is falling in love with my roommate, we can finally talk about a dick we've both seen."

"You saw his dick?"

Michael winked at him, "You score good when you score it Calum."

"I fucking hate you."

 

♥ ♡ ♥

After he went home, the first thing he did after taking out his coat was to settle down to his beige colored couch and start texting Ashton. 

Calum:

sorry i didn't text back earlier, couldn't find something to say

Calum: 

i wanted to tho! i'm just not good with words ya know

Ashton:

Hey! It's fine, always respect people and their way of replying to messages (also time).

Ashton: 

However, that text wasn't even something you had to reply to, pretty. It was just a kind introduction to my phone number. Which I'm hoping you will use quite often ;)

Calum:

why are you such an awesome, kind and just ugh human being?

Ashton: 

Hey now! Why am I "ugh"?

Calum:

bc it's hard to explain how amazing u are

Ashton:

I'm kidding, I didn't ask that. I'm not blushing, shut up. 

Calum:

damn 

Ashton:

Okay whatever you nasty yet beautiful person, are you possibly free tonight?

Ashton:

Sorr if that was too straight forward, I'm just in need of seeing you.

Ashton: 

Sorry*

Calum: 

oh no, i would love to see you again. these past days have been fun! where are we going this time?

Ashton: 

I really wanted to stargaze with like picnic bags and stuff you know? I thought it would be cool! And I asked Luke about it and he asked Michael like a minute ago, I've never seen anyone agree on anything that fast before.

Ashton: 

So, I decided to ask you so I would have someone to third wheel with me. Really don't want to see Michael making my best friend fall so hard that I'm afraid he will bruise his knees. 

Calum: 

i hate to watch mike flirt bc he's so fucking good at it that i feel depressed and sick at the same time. 

Ashton:

Michael was a charmer at school yet he never brought anyone to our room. So that was a good trait of his!

Calum: 

your ! s give me heart attacks

Ashton:

Sorry?

Calum:

lol no, keep going. im just not used to proper grammar. 

Ashton: 

I will be honored to be the one that helps you to get used to it!

Calum tore another rose petal and threw it in his glass jar. 

♥ ♡ ♥

He had a basket full of handmade sandwiches in his hand's tight grip and his feet were hitting the ground hardly. He was eager to reach his destination, that was why he sallied forth. He knocked on the door, his palms still sweaty when he was greeted with a smiling Michael which he was suprised to see. Before he even got to adjust it though, he was pulled by his t-shirt non existing collar and dragged by the edge of the door.

"Luke looks so fucking hot and if you see me like kiss him, his cheek, or make a move or something, please don't 'ew'."

Calum chuckled lightly, "I'll try. Let me meet this pretty boy first."

So he walked into the two's home, being greeted with a pale skinned boy, a small smile plastered on his thin lips that were decorated with deep dimples, blue irises that looked exquisite with lighter colored strings in them. The boy was beautiful and he definitely got what Michael was talking about. It was hard not to like his appearance.

"Hello, I'm Luke," he said, holding out his hand.

Calum shook it, smiling right back at him, "Hello Luke, nice to finally meet you! I'm Calum."

Luke then invited him outside the house where apparently Ashton was taking over the barbecue. There was an aisle that had a beautiful painting that definitely did have to be resumed. It was only the sky yet, it was clearly left of to dry so the painter could narrow down to the details. He appreciated art and this was definitely the good kind. Not only the painting, not only the beautiful sunset but also two tiny tents standing next to each other, a handsome boy that was wearing a tank top doing a barbecue with a big smile on his face.

It was all art.

Calum was the one Ashton was smiling at and that honored him more than it should have, so he just smiled back. He then walked over to him, "What're you cooking chef?" he asked, placing his basket down at the ground.

"Just meat and stuff, how're you?"

"Just meat and stuff sounds beautiful," he chuckled, making Ashton roll his eyes yet still crack a small smile.

They watched as Luke and Michael walked out together as well, Michael pointing his finger towards Luke's painting to point something out that Calum didn't quite get. They did really look good together, their face expressions fit well in an oddly satisfying way.

Every single person and thing in the garden seemed to amaze him but the best of them all was the boy standing next to him with his bright hazel eyes looking down at the barbecue beside him. His curly, middle length hair was covering his eyebrows and his nose was scrunched up, his hands tight around an iron spatula as he flipped the meat over.

Calum wanted to laugh at himself, he wanted to laugh at how pathetic he was for starting to fall for a boy who he had only spent a few days with yet if he did that, he would automatically have to do it for Michael as well since the way he was intensely staring at the boy beside him was definitely not friendly. Luke was staring back though and it was as full of love as Michael's. 

Yet he was the one staring at Ashton, not aware of the fact that the boy beside him somehow took glances at his face when turned around. They were playing a game but they all seemed to losing. They didn't mind though, it was a good kind of loss.

They spent most of their time by the barbecue, watching Ashton work his skills on it while they sometimes teased about 'being a man' and laughed on about it. Luke sometimes leaned on Michael's shoulder as he did, pretending to not notice. Calum loved watching them in an odd way, he appreciated this boy trying to climb his way into his best friend's heart in a kind and adorable manner. He appreciated this boy.

Luke was geeky in a way yet he also was very creative, when Michael or anyone else brought up art his eyes seemed to shine and his whole world started to spin faster than it normally did. He definitely wasn't the type that he would imagine Michael going for but he was pleased about it. Luke was a good type. 

He also seemed very smart and very stable with his life, he was funny, sympathetic and attractive. He was passionate about his art yet he didn't like the way most of them turned out, yet he seemed very talented and again, Calum appreciated him. He also looked good with the sunset behind him and the boy's best friend was admiring the view, tracing eyes on Luke with no shame. Michael had no shame and that probably was why Luke was blushing. 

There was a red and white picnic blanket spread on the floor that they all sat on, Luke taking the lead to talk, "Okay so Ashton organized this but we were wondering if you two wanted to sleep together or you were like fine with like it being Michael and me and Ashton and Calum?"

Michael smiled at Luke, totally ignoring everything around him, "Oh no, we don't mind at all."

Luke's cheeks were coated with a blush again, Calum rolling his eyes at their cuteness. 

The hazel eyed one was looking at him too, handing him a plate that had several sausages in it, "I didn't get your opinion on staying the night with me."

Calum looked down sheepishly, "I wouldn't mind at all."

"Neither would I," said the other boy, smiling as he did while Calum took the plate and placed it down.

The four watched the sun as it went down, eating along with it. They laughed at certain jokes and smiled at each other sometimes, they basically had a good time. But it was clear that they all wanted some mean time as "couples" so after the sun went down and they stargazed, they all used being tired as an excuse.  

The tent Calum and Ashton were sharing was light orange also was pretty wide yet they still had their sleeping bags placed pretty close. If they were both straight and had no feelings for each other, watching the other one undress wouldn't be a hard time but it was. Watching Ashton strip himself to his boxers then only be left with sweatpants was really a hard time. 

The struggle was real yet Calum still stepped in his bag, pulling the layer a little upwards so his chest was fully covered. He then turned around, facing Ashton and smiling at him. His smile was pure, full of admiration and fondness, he looked beautiful, sexy and charming at the same time which really wasn't a safe mixture. 

"Luke and Michael seem to not be aware of the fact that there is this thing called 'shadows' and we can see them make out."

Calum chuckled at that, slowly lowering his head and it met Ashton's left arm, the boy pulled away immediately to look at the other one's eyes, "Your meat skills are out of this world."

Ashton chuckled back, "Your beauty is out of this world."

And that was it, that was when the hazel eyed boy leaned down and pressed his lips against the smaller boy's and that was when Calum fell so hard that he probably bruised somewhere on his skin. He reminded himself to throw another rose petal in the glass jar as he felt Ashton's climb on him, his hands holding tightly on his hips as the boy supported himself with his elbows so he wouldn't land on Calum. The way Ashton moved against him was mesmerizing and beautiful, the way groans left his mouth as Calum tugged at his hair was beautiful as well. Ashton was beautiful and he was Calum's.


End file.
